


They Were Heroes Once

by MahTohSka



Category: Ghostbusters (Comics)
Genre: Alternate Ending, F/M, Transformation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-22
Updated: 2019-07-22
Packaged: 2020-07-10 14:50:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,093
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19907500
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MahTohSka/pseuds/MahTohSka
Summary: An alternate ending to 'You Break It, You Buy It', what would've happened if Apollo had taken the four changed Ghostbusters right from under their caretaker's noses.





	They Were Heroes Once

**Author's Note:**

> This alternate ending has another alternate ending - *Inception BWAH* - because I couldn't end it on a sad note. Best to read 'You Break It, You Buy It' first!

An appreciated calming silence came over the firehouse as the night approached; earlier it had been chaos as help and staff tried to break up a fight between two wolves who were actually the company’s owners, thanks to a curse they had accidentally brought onto themselves from an unlisted item stashed away in a cargo shipment of artifacts.

The two wolves had strangely become calmer as the evening came, having been raging beasts in the day; the one with brown tints in his black fur strolled over and laid down next to the wolf with high contrasts of brown and gray, giving a small lick on the latter’s snout. The smaller wolf of the four member pack joined the two, light brown with little contrast in his fur, shaking himself from head to toe and curled up next to them; lastly, the only wolf with no color in his dark, black fur approached, giving out a short huff and subsequently sat himself next to brown tinted wolf.

Kylie had volunteered to stay at the hall, FBI Agent and part time Ghostbusters Mel Ortiz decided to help her, Bryan immediately joined in the dog sitting, with Ron reluctantly agreeing to spend the night watching over the ‘hell hounds’, as he lovingly called them; Walter had escorted Janine home that evening, their minds heavy with the thought of these wolves having no option but to stay this way forever thanks to the cursed item. The unlisted artifact in question was a bronze wolf head, that Ray had accidentally shattered when he had unintentionally read a passage from a weathered book – it was becoming evident those two were connected in some way.

“Would you … care for some company tonight, Janine? I don’t think with all that’s occupying our minds will bring an easy night’s rest should I leave you be for the night,” Peck asked as they stood on the steps of her apartment complex. “Maybe crack open a bottle, briefly forget the impending doom awaiting.” He put a comforting hand on her upper arm, Walter saw she couldn’t let go of the thought, his brow faintly drawn together. “Janine?”

After minutes of staring at the ground she gazed up at him with teary eyes, giving a light sniffle, her stare darting to the street and down to her fidgeting hands as she grabbed her apartment keys. All Janine could think was Egon being trapped in that canid form, maybe for the rest of his life, until they find a spell to break the curse; the worst case scenario always played out in her mind and she wanted to desperately forget about it and think on the positives. They will find a counter spell, they will bring the guys back to normal. Janine’s anxieties, and perhaps part of her inner psychic inklings, were drawing up negatives about this ordeal; she let out a frustrated sigh after rummaging through her purse for the keys, fed up with the gnawing worries in her brain.

“Sure, why not. I got a few bottles we can open.” Walter gave a short nod, dropping his hand as he was led inside the complex; a gold hue shimmered over his blue eyes, briefly seeing into her mind the battle she was fighting and he himself not wanting to lose to his own insecurities. He shacked himself on the couch after they had been through two and a half bottles of wine, his newly found Fae senses tingling that something was definitely wrong; however, he fought against it, claiming that it was just anxieties trying to scare him.

In the small pile of fur sleeping in the rec room, the wolf with brown and gray contrasts heard a floorboard creak, his mismatched eyes cracking open and saw a shadow standing on the top stair; the other three wolves collectively sensed it, the small pack rising to their feet and followed the tall shadow down to the main doors. The lock and handle undoing themselves as the door became ajar, a tall figure with dark ginger wavy hair stood on the sidewalk; his blue eyes piercing the wolves’ gazes with a twinkle, a corner of his lips faintly curling up under his goatee. The creatures before him stepped out, their tails gradually wagging, their stares attentive with ears forward.

The door of the firehouse closed and locked itself as a breeze came through, the city’s sounds kept its same tune as the night progressed into dawn. Kylie stretched herself on the couch, sleepy eyes cracking open, heavy brows drawn together as she didn’t see the wolves sleeping behind the sofa; maybe they were down stairs on the main floor. But her ears were usually greeted by the pack’s morning group howl, fear gradually rising in her mind as Kylie had searched every nook and cranny of the firehouse; checking the GPS that was connected to their microchips, she didn’t see little black dots blinking at her. Her worst fear came true as she opened the front door and saw four collars laying on the sidewalk, the four tags glimmering in the morning’s light that bore the names of the wolves – ‘Ray’, ‘Winston’, ‘Egon’, and ‘Peter’.

It had taken months, nearly a year, to find suitable replacements; Rookie and Ron had their own branch to run back in Chicago, Kylie couldn’t do this by herself, Mel still dedicated her time to help train the new team – even Walter stepping in on a case or two if short staffed. Kylie had found information on the artifact and the adjacent spell, her voice faltering as she read over excerpt she found.

“It took some digging around but the bronze wolf head that was shattered belonged to a temple dedicated to Apollo, who has had wolves as messengers, according to a wolf cult that worshipped him,” she started, “he was also called ‘the wolf born’, as his mother turned herself into a wolf to flee from enemies when she was carrying him and his sister, Artemis. It’s said whoever has read the passage will wake up as a wolf the next day, having seen nothing happening with the bronze head.”

“But it shattered. It’s not supposed to do that, was it?” Ortiz leaned forward on the table.

“Knowing Ray, he doesn’t, didn’t, have the right tongue for Latin,” Kylie’s shoulders subtly slumped. “That’s what caused it to break.” She continued with the excerpt. “Over time, the curse gradually changes the person to fully become a wolf, in body and mind, until …,” she could hardly read the next sentence, her stomach twisting into knots, “until Apollo comes to claim them, the wolf now a part of a pack that serves as Apollo’s messengers and guardians.”

A heavy silence came upon the four gathered around the table in the lab, hearts sinking; Walter could feel anger rising from Janine, he carefully put a hand over hers, clasping it as his thumb brushed her knuckles. He felt her faintly tremor, Janine took a deep breath, Peck’s touch grounding her and kept the fury at bay.

“Can we summon this son of a bitch have him bring them back as they were before the curse?” she managed to get out.

Kylie hesitated, eventually shaking her head. “It’s a done deal, Janine, I’m sorry,” her voice dropped to an audible whisper, breaking as her eyes began to water. “I wish there was a way, though.” 

“The best thing we can do right now is move forward,” Mel consoled Kylie by rubbing her back as the now full time Ghostbuster quietly sobbed. “We honor them every day by doing what we do, and I don’t think taking revenge on a god is our end goal, or the smartest thing to do right now. If they come back, they come back and it’s business as usual. If not … then, at least we can continue carrying on as we are now. Keep the legacy alive.”

“I agree with Agent Ortiz,” Peck mumbled, a light sniffle sounding from him.

“Walter, are you crying?” Kylie saw his eyes were a little teary, her lips managing to curl up into a grin. “Do you actually have feelings for them?”

“Yes, I do, alright?” he lightly snarled, standing up and wiping away any tears that escaped as Peck tried to compose himself. “If Venkman was here, he wouldn’t be able to let this go. He’d be teasing me like there’s no tomorrow.” He gave one big sniffle, sighing out. “But she’s right. Move forward, business as usual. We have a team of qualified people, with Miss Griffin guiding them, myself and Ortiz lending our help with cases. And Janine as well, despite her small protests.” Peck flashed a grin towards her, Janine opening up with a small huff and a smirk. “We adjust accordingly if they return, should this Apollo let them go.” Walter briefly paused, leaning forward on the table as he rejoined his hand with Janine’s. “Give it three months. If they aren’t returned, then it’s time to move on from them.” She tensed under him, Walter gently squeezed her hand, glancing about the three. “Only then we can fully declare to the public that Doctors Stantz, Venkman, and Spengler, and Mister Zeddemore are missing in action. We can say that they went on an interdimensional excursion and lost themselves.”

“But we’ve been keeping all this under wraps for months, Peck,” Ortiz stood up from the table. “Doing that is easy for me working in the field when I’m not here, but in this instance, they’ve already seen the new team out on the streets, and people have been wondering where … the ‘real’ Ghostbusters are.”

Peck contemplated her words, thinking of the setbacks of waiting so long, and the backfiring. It would look bad for them all around, even the mayor had been inquiring on the whereabouts. He nodded. “Duly noted. We’ll work together on a statement and release it by the end of the week.”

Three months went by, it had now been two years since the guys had disappeared; the new team taking up the mantle as the faces of the Ghostbusters, things smoothly transitioned. Walter had taken Janine out on several dates, the pair growing intimately closer. He could see she still kept the torch for Egon burning but it was slowly diminishing, helping her realize this was reality now; Janine was ready to let go of Egon by the end of that first year, and she did.

They had chosen a wooded section of Central Park to spend time together, Janine lacing her fingers with Walter’s, he kissed the top of her head with the two sharing a small smile. Up ahead on the trail ten feet away a wolf had hopped out onto the leaf covered trail; the couple froze in their tracks, the wolf had glanced about its surroundings, letting out a small, deep howl. It sniffed the air, gold eyes soon landing on the two humans standing to its left; Janine hitched her breath as she saw the wolf now facing them, unconsciously clinging onto Walter.

“Did the zoo lose a wolf? It won’t hurt us, will it?” she whispered to him.

Walter was having a crisis on the mental plane, a wave of gold came over his blue eyes as he stared at the animal before them; he sensed a vaguely familiar presence about the creature, his eyes widened when it finally hit him like a punch to the gut. He shivered as the wolf let out another short howl, Peck was frozen on the spot, bewildered at the shocking discovery.

“It’s … it’s him …,” he blinked hard, the connection he was forming with the wolf’s aura becoming solid and confirmed the beast’s identity. “It’s Spengler.”

Janine broke from him, ready throw a punch at Walter. “You better be joking,” she growled. “Don’t be an ass. I worked hard to let go of him, I will not forgive you if this is a sick joke.”

“I-I’m not, Janine, just … just look.” She turned her head over to the wolf who had moved three feet towards them, it gingerly sniffed them, his nose extended; another wolf soon joined the black wolf with brown tints, this one having a high contrast in brown, gray and black with some white. A smaller wolf with little contrast of brown and tan trotted up from behind the two larger canids, a fourth one with no color at all in its black fur hopped onto the trail. It took a moment for Janine to realize why the wolves were starting to look very familiar – it was the guys.

“Oh my god,” she gasped, taking a step forward. “Egon?” She was ready to run to the wolves until a whistle broke out – a short low tone moving up a note that prolonged a little before sharply going up to a high pitch. The four wolves turned their heads behind them, immediately running off to the source. Janine’s eyes widened, extending her arm as she started to run, Peck catching up to her and pulled her back.

Her heart raced in her ribcage, trying to pull free from Walter. “No, no, no, no, come back! Come back!”

“Janine, there’s no way of getting them back,” Peck tried to reason with her, surprised how strong she was against his hold, she nearly broke free. “You have to let them go! They’re not coming back!” Janine gradually stopped her protests, Walter held her tight as they sunk to the ground, she turned in to embrace him in a vice like grip, burying her face into his coat.

“I know it hurts, I know,” Peck gently told her, keeping his arms around her. “Breathe, Janine, breathe, at least we know they’re alive.” He pet the back of her head, planting a kiss on the top of it. His body was shaking as well, shocked at the revelation, the gold vanishing from his eyes. “It’s okay … it’s okay.”

Apollo stood in front of what looked like a recently erected statue. Candles and trinkets, flowers lay strewn about it, admiring the spirit of this city’s people, their adoration of heroes. He heard little groans and heavy panting behind him, he turned to see his four companions looking up at him, tails wagging.

“It’s amazing how commemoration of heroes remains constant throughout history,” Apollo said to his pack, glancing up back at the statue. “Perhaps, in another life, this wouldn’t be here if I hadn’t chosen you four. Maybe it would’ve, either way.” He knew it meant nothing to them, the wolves’ stares fixed mostly on him, but their eyes darted to the statue; two wolves now sat on either side of him, Apollo sensing their curiosity at the four men standing on a granite platform. “It’s a nice way of remembering those who did well to serve and protect this city. But here we are.” He glanced about the charms and candles strewn about. “Look how they adore you all. A city’s admiration for its heroes never dies.”

The black wolf with brown tints stepped towards a packet of Twinkies sitting among the other trinkets, sniffing the wrapped snacks and pawed at it. Apollo bent down and grabbed the package, the other three wolves joining him as they also inspected the packet.

“Easy, boys, heel,” he stood up, the wolves backing off and sat up. Apollo contemplated on putting the snack cakes back, soon lightly shrugging his shoulders and opened the packet. “No harm in giving you all a treat, I suppose. C’mon, boys, let’s go home.” He split up the two cakes evenly among the four wolves, the five of them quickly vanishing in the blink of an eye.

A pedestrian stopped at the statue, laying down loose change they had and a package of Stay Puft marshmallows, taking a moment to read the plaque below on the high platform:  
‘IN COMMEMORATION AND DEDICATION TO THE MEN WHO SERVED THIS CITY AND ITS CITIZENS – THE GHOSTBUSTERS: DOCTOR RAYMOND STANTZ, DOCTOR EGON SPENGLER, DOCTOR PETER VENKMAN, MISTER WINSTON ZEDDEMORE. WE THANK AND HONOR THESE BRAVE MEN FOR THEIR DEEDS TO THE CITY’

**But that’s what really happened. But what about this?**

Apollo stood in a front of what looked like a recently erected statue. Candles and trinkets, flowers lay strewn about it, admiring the spirit of this city’s people, their adoration of heroes. He heard little groans and heavy panting behind him, he turned to see his four companions looking up at him, tails wagging.

“It’s amazing how commemoration of heroes remains constant throughout history,” Apollo said to his pack, glancing up back at the statue. “Perhaps, in another life, this wouldn’t be here if I hadn’t chosen you four. Maybe it would’ve, either way.” He knew it meant nothing to them, the wolves’ stares fixed mostly on him, but their eyes darted to the statue; two wolves now sat on either side of him, Apollo sensing their curiosity at the four men standing on a granite platform. “It’s a nice way of remembering those who did well to serve and protect this city. But here we are.” He glanced about the charms and candles strewn about. “Look how they adore you all. A city’s admiration for its heroes never dies.”

The black wolf with brown tints stepped towards a packet of Twinkies sitting among the other trinkets, sniffing the wrapped snacks and pawed at it. Apollo bent down and grabbed the package, the other three wolves joining him as they also inspected the packet. He stood, the wolves slightly backing off, sitting up with attentive stares; Apollo glanced at the wolves and the statue, a sudden change in tune coming over him. He was coming to realize how important they were to this city, the dangers they face to protect it. And most importantly, the people the wolves had associated themselves with. They were cornerstones, the foundation of the company, he came to the conclusion that maybe it wasn’t the right time for them to depart like this.

Apollo lightly sighed. “Perhaps I should make things right.” He looked to his companions. “You have all been very loyal and serving your duties to me. I thank you all, but we must part ways. Tomorrow you shall be returned.”

“This is the seventh time they’ve called this week, I’m at my wit’s end with them! I swear they get more stingy as the week goes on,” Janine grumbled as she hung up the phone with a difficult client wanting immediate help for a minor mist that keeps appearing even though she’s stressed multiple times it was nothing to worry about for now.

Peck moved behind her, massaging her shoulders. “Some think they are above others,” he pecked her cheek, “and for those people, we can politely tell them to fuck off.”

She gave a small chuckle, leaning back in her chair. “Maybe I should next time they call.”

The front door to the firehouse creaked open; it had been a very foggy day, some of it rolling in as a figure stepped through the door, a large heavy blanket shrouded over their shoulders. He had a weary appearance, bare feet shuffling on the cold floor; his mismatched eyes darting from the parked hearse to the two people standing very still at the desk. Ray rubbed his eyes to focus more, his mind working to find the names of the shocked people who looked ready to scream.

“Janine? Peck?” he mumbled.

“What year is it? If anyone says, ‘twenty years in the future’, I’m gonna faint,” came a voice behind Ray. Venkman staggered through the door, catching himself on the frame. Peter lifted his head to see Walter’s shocked face as he continued forward. “Don’t look so surprised, Peck. You’ve seen us in our birthday suits before.”

Winston walked in next, shivering from the cold outside, pulling the blanket tighter around his body. “I wish someone at least would’ve left us some clothes when we came to. I feel a little embarrassed like this.” He stopped next to Ray who was still stuck in his tracks, glancing up at Janine and Peck, giving them a sleepy wave. “What’d we miss?”

“I feel tingly all over …,” came a voice that Janine had missed hearing, a face making itself known that made her stomach twist and flip over. Egon came through, putting his glasses on. He saw a flash of red sprint right to him, arms squeezing him tight, his eyes nearly bulged out. Spengler glanced down to see Janine tightly embracing him and didn’t seem to be letting go.

“At least someone missed you,” Peter nudged Egon.

Spengler had one arm free from adjusting his glasses, hesitating before wrapping it around Janine, resting his cheek on the top of her head. Peck watched the display, letting Janine have her time with Spengler, soon concentrating on the other three.

“Allow me to fill you in gentlemen,” he managed to get out after clearing his throat. “Two years ago, you vanished by Apollo’s doing. Since that time, we’ve kept the business running with a new team under the guidance of Miss Griffin …”

“Hold on, two years?!” Peter exclaimed, taking a step forward.

“We … we’ve been gone for that long?” Ray’s eyes widened in slow realization.

“Keep in mind, by the second month we were in our alternate temporary forms, we had no way of knowing what day it was, our minds had swiftly shifted to a primal form of cognitive thinking,” Egon lifted his head to the group, Janine felt the rumble of his baritone as her ear was pressed to his chest, taking lost but now found comfort in it. “If it really had been two years, we would need proof of the time lapse. Any PKE surges, culminated data.”

“That, I can assure you, Dr. Spengler, we have record of,” Peck sat on the edge of the desk at the front, leaning back against his with ankles crossed. She still hadn’t released herself from Egon, Walter loudly cleared his throat, getting a little uncomfortable. “Janine? Can you remove yourself from Dr. Spengler so that he may have a moment to sit while we discuss the events leading to their sudden return?”

Egon moved his arm to put his hand on her shoulder, gently pushing against it. “Janine, it’s okay. I’m here,” he softly spoke her as he tried to free himself. She gradually pulled away, wet hazel eyes staring into his brown eyes, his brows faintly knitted together in rising worry. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah,” she lightly sniffled, “yeah, I am.”

He gave a curt nod. “I just want to be sure.”

“I need to talk to you about something,” she fidgeted with the blanket’s hem. “I don’t know if Walter will tell you after the meeting but him and I are dating. With you gone, it was hard for me to come to terms with the fact that you might not ever come back. And I … moved on. But now that you’re here, I’m at a crossroads.” She paused, pulling her hands away from the blanket and crossed her arms. “I had to say it, otherwise things would’ve gotten ugly for us.”

“If Peck makes you happy, I’m fine with that.” Her downcast eyes shot up at Egon with surprise. He looked a little hurt, but she remembered one fact from her and Egon’s relationship – he was fine with being open to dating other people. She had forgotten about it until this moment in time, Janine felt a hand place itself on her shoulder, Walter had come up behind her looking a little defensive. Spengler kept his eye on Peck as Janine told Egon she was seeing Walter, knowing it was fine she found comfort in him.

Peck bit the inside of his cheek as he admitted, “Janine, if you want to split your time between myself and Spengler, I’m okay with that. It’s clear you still hold a torch for him.”

Janine’s eyes lit up at this discovery; as did Egon’s, more in shock than surprise. She wrapped her arms around Egon’s neck, pulling him down for a deep kiss, Venkman whistling behind them. She broke off, the two of them catching their breath.

“I’ve been wanting to do that for a long time,” she panted.

“Good, ya kissed, happy reunion, your boyfriends love you very much, now can we please address why my office has looks like a storage room for a shit ton of boxes?” Peter called out from the filing cabinets.


End file.
